Hailing from Colby College in Waterville, Maine, Nicholas Jacobs, Assistant Professor of Government, and Daniel Shea, Professor of Government, authored The Rural Voter: The Politics of Place and the Disuniting of America in 2023. Their lecture "The Rural Voter: Separating Myth from Reality" and book are based on over one hundred years of data and results from three large voter surveys, they have attempted to better understand the decisions of rural voters and have explored where the urban-rural divide is a real thing. Pinpointing forces behind the rise of the so-called rural voter, Jacobs and Shea discuss in the book how this critical group of voters emerged and how they have impacted American politics. The first intallment of Democracy in Action will include a lecture by Jacobs and Shea followed by a moderated conversation with Associate Professor and Knudson Endowed Chair in Family Policy David Rothwell and Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer Scott Vignos. 

The lecture is free and open to the public. Registration is required. 

The event will be streamed on live.oregonstate.edu for those who are unable to attend in-person.